I just got home from New York City, cradle of contemporary culture, where I was attending the Book Expo America (BEA) along with fellow Inker and scribe Keith Raffel. The three days of BEA were great — a chance to meet avid readers, connect with other writers, and get an inside look at the inner workings (and outer breakings) of the publishing industry.
I also met Elmo on my way back to the hotel. He was much taller than I expected, and his voice deeper than I remembered, though I could barely understand him under all that fur.
Elmo asked me for money so I gave him a dollar, which apparently was much appreciated because he put his arm around me and posed for a picture. When I asked what he was raising money for, he mumbled something that I didn't quite catch, but looking across Times Square at the hastily erected police barricades I wondered if Elmo was raising funds to offset the cost of the President's visit to Broadway for his date night with the First Lady.
My fellow bloggers know that while I don't belong to either major political party I do have equal and unbiased disdain for both of them, have a short fuse when it comes to any discussion related to taxes, and very well might be a closet libertarian if I could just get the skeletons out of there to make enough room. So as I threaded my way past cops working overtime, bomb squad vehicles and cement trucks requisitioned to block off major thoroughfares, it occurred to me that my wife and I, much like the President and First Lady, try to have a date night every week. That gave me an idea. Upon returning home I contacted my Congressional Representatives to see if some of the government's stimulus package could be diverted to my wife and I every week so we could take in a show. I even offered to fly commercial and pay for the babysitter. Thus far I've had no response from either the White House or Capital Hill.
The rest of the trip to New York was uneventful, but it was wonderful to be in a place where you can have dinner well after midnight, where no one wakes up early on Saturdays unless they want the streets to themselves, and where you can always get a cab at any hour, even if the driver doesn't know where he's going.
I also got to have dinner with Keith, so I guess you could call it a perfect weekend.
3 comments:
Sounds like a fun time in the Big Apple.
Taller, with a deeper voice than you remembered? So that's what Eliot Spitzer is up to these days.
Hmmm, what about an assassin dressed up as Elmo? Now there's a plot line for a new book. In fact, I think Odelia might show up dressed as the Cookie Monster in a future book.
Did the Feds frisk Elmo after your photo op? Or was he there to flush out closeted libertarians?
Inquiring minds want to know.
Every cab driver I've ever had in NY not only knew the route, but knew the fastest way to get there. Driving over pedestrians saves ever so much time.
Sounds like you guys had a blast.
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